A Decade of Research on the Occurrence of Triazine Herbicides in the Environment Leads to a Unique Summary

Location of U.S. Geological Survey Toxic Substances Hydrology Program study areas for triazine herbicides in the Midwestern United States
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U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists completed a variety of groundbreaking studies on the occurrence, fate, and transport of triazine herbicides and their degradates throughout the 1990s. The results of these studies have been summarized and condensed into a USGS report and a book chapter providing, for the first time, a comprehensive snapshot of a decade of this research. The studies include:

The development of methods for the analysis of triazine herbicides and their degradates in water.

A surface-water reconnaissance that documented a "spring flush" of herbicide concentrations in rivers.

A ground-water reconnaissance involving more than 300 wells across the Midwestern United States that showed degradates of herbicides were more commonly found than the parent compounds.

Tracking the transport of triazines through drinking-water reservoirs; results showed herbicide concentrations remaining high throughout most of the year in reservoirs where the water has long residence times.

Research on the occurrence of triazines in precipitation that documented the atmospheric transport of trazine herbicides on a regional scale.

The publications provide one-stop access for information that can be used for the scientific underpinnings of policy, land management, and regulatory decision making regarding triazine herbicides and their degradates in the environment.